Shot container wad for hard shot

ABSTRACT

The petals of a shot container portion of a shotshell wad have internal flanges on longitudinal edges thereof. The flanges assure that the proper position of the petals will be obtained and maintained when the wad is inserted in a shotshell. The increased radial thickness at the flanges and the interaction of adjacent flanges with the shot particles prevents shot particles from squeezing through a slit and scoring the bore of a shotgun upon firing. A thin obturating cup, molded integrally to the base of the shot container, collapses against the base of the shot container to provide cushioning upon firing, seal gases behind the wad and add thickness to the base of the shot container to prevent penetration of shot particles therethrough. The minimizing of materials permitted by the multi-functional wad components allows maximum loads of powder and shot to be used.

7 United States Patent [191 Curran Sept. 17, 1974 [73] Assignee: Remington Arms Company, Inc.,

Bridgeport, Conn.

22 Filed: Dec. 4, 1972 21 Appl. No.: 311,689

[52] US. Cl. 102/42 C, 102/95 [51] Int. Cl. F42b 7/08 [58] Field of Search 102/42 C, 42, 95

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,074,344 l/l963 Devaux 102/42 C 3,208,382 9/1965 Foote et al 102/42 C 3,262,392 7/l966 Becker et a1 102/42 C 3,487,779 l/l970 Hendricks 102/42 C 3,623,431 11/1971 Hendricks 1 102/42 C 3,722,420 3/1973 Herter 102/42 C Primary Examiner-Robert F. Stahl Attorney, Agent, or Firm-John H. Lewis, Jr,; Nicholas Skovran; Joel D. Talcott l 5 7 1 ABSTRACT The petals of a shot container portion of a shotshell wad have internal flanges on longitudinal edges thereof. The flanges assure that the proper position of the petals will be obtained and maintained when the wad is inserted in a shotshell. The increased radial thickness at the flanges and the interaction of adjacent flanges with the shot particles prevents shot particles from squeezing through a slit and scoring the bore of a shotgun upon firing. A thin obturating cup, molded integrally to the base of the shot container, collapses against the base of the shot container to provide cushioning uponfiring, seal gases behind the wad and add thickness to the base of the shot container to prevent penetration of shot particles therethrough. The minimizing of materials permitted by the multi-functional wad components allows maximum loads of powder and shot to be used.

19 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures SHOT CONTAINER WAD FOR HARD SHOT Lead shot has long been used as projectiles in shotshells of all types. It is inexpensive, its low melting point makes shot production relatively simple and its high specific gravity permits a more massive shot load to be contained in the limited space available in the shotshell. A further advantage of lead shot is that it is sufficiently soft so that it will cause little or no damage to barrels and a load of shot can be forced inwardly by the choke of a shotgun without permanently deforming the choke.

Conservation studies, however, have shown that lead shot can be responsible for the undesired deaths of great numbers of waterfowl. Certain species of wild ducks are bottom feeders and either dive or dip their heads beneath the water to forage for food in the plankton, grasses or other material at the bottom. Shot pellets resting on the bottom are ingested by the birds and disintegrated by their digestive systems. Lead poisoning caused by this ground-up lead produces losses of substantial numbers of ducks each year.

Attempts to coat or otherwise alter lead shot have failed to alleviate this problem, and the only promising solution has been to substitute a non-toxic material for lead. Unfortunately, there is no other material with density, hardness, and other physical characteristics approaching those of lead which is economically practicable to use. Iron and steel appear to offer the best compromise and are, of course, the least expensive of all of the useful metals in raw material form. They are also, however, much more difficult to process than lead shot. With a specific gravity only about two-thirds that of lead, a comparable charge weight of iron or steel shot occupies a much larger volume in the shotshell so that substantial changes in shotshell and wad design are required.

The iron or steel shot pellets may be nearly as hard .or harder than some of the steels used to form shotgun barrels. As a result, use of unprotected ferrous metal shot may scratch and abrade the normally polished barrel surface. Further, nearly all shotgun barrels are choked or formed with a constriction adjacent the muzzle to assist in controlling the dispersion of the shot charge. The passage of an unprotected compacted column of ferrous metal shot through the choke has been known to result in such a high degree of pennanent deformation that the constriction tends to disappear with a resultant swelling of the outside diameter of the barrel. This eventually adversely affects the pattern performance of the barrel.

Although a sufficiently thick wad made of a suitable material may successfully prevent barrel scoring, as shown by Foote, et al, US. Pat. No. 3,208,382 issued on Sept. 28, 1965, prior art shotshell wads have not successfully dealt with the problem of barrel damage caused by hard shot particles forced through a longitudinal slit provided to cause the shot container to open when the wad leaves the barrel. The severity of the problem is increased because, in many guns, the wad must expand as it leaves the shotshell body and enters the barrel, thus tending to widen the slit. Further, if hard shot particles become lodged between the wad and the shotshell due to improperly aligned petals, extensive barrel scoring may result.

The improved shotshell wad of this invention solves theseand other related problems. In accordance with this invention, a one piece shotshell wad has a plurality of longitudinal slits along a shot container wall. An internal flange along both sides of each slit prevents shot particles from penetrating through the slit due to the increased material thickness at the edges and because the shape of the flanges causes interaction with the shot particles which tends to prevent opening of the slit while the wad is in the barrel.

A thin generally hemispherical obturating cup attached to the base of the shot container, acting as a deformable dome, collapses against the base when the shotshell is fired and thus serves as a cushion for the wad. The obturating cup provides gas sealing and some temperature compensation for the shotshell ballistics and the added material thickness of the collapsed cup augments the shot container base enhancing its ability to hold the shot particles and thus permitting the base to be initially thinner.

The combination of a multi-functional obturating cup with a shot container wad which prevents barrel scoring without the use of excessive material thickness permits optimum utilization of shotshell volume for holding the shot charge.

It is an object of this invention to provide a shotshell container wad for hard shot which prevents damage to shotgun barrels. I

It is another object of this invention to provide a shotshell container for hard shot which causes no greater choke deformation and damage than lead shot loads.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a shotshell container wad for hard shot which provides sealing, cushioning, temperature compensation and shot container reinforcement with a single member having minimized material volume.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent when the following specification is read in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a shotshell utilizing a shot container wad of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the shot container wad of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary end view of the shot container of FIG. 2 illustrating interaction with shot particles;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the shotshell taken generally along the line 4-4 of FIG. 1 showing insertion and orientation of the shot container wad by a wad insertion tool;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a petal of the shot container wad of this invention;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment of a shot container wad petal;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of an additional embodiment of the petal;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the shotshell wad and shot of FIG. 1 during acceleration in a shotgun barrel;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment of the shot container wad of this invention; and

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the shot container wad of FIG. 9 during acceleration with a load of shot particles in a shotgun barrel.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates a shotshell 10 having a sidewall 11 and base wad 12, which may be integrally formed therewith, covered by a metal cap M. Openings are provided in the cap 14 and base wad 12 to accommodate a primer 15.

Within the sidewall 11, a charge of a suitable propellant 16 is positioned in communication with the primer 15. A one piece shot container wad 17 made in accordance with this invention is positioned ahead of the propellant 16 and loaded with a desired load of shot particles 19. The particles 19 may be hard shot such as iron or steel. A forward end portion 11a of the shotshell sidewall 11 is preferably crimped to close the shotshell.

The shotshell wad 17 of this invention (see also FIG. 2) is preferably injection molded in a single piece from a suitable plastic such as high density polyethylene. A shot container portion 20 is generally cylindrical in shape and has a base 21 and a plurality of forwardly directed petals 22 peripherally attached thereto. A generally hemispherical obturating cup 24, formed integrally with the wad, is centrally attached to a rear face 21a of the base 21.

Each of the segments or petals 22 of the shot container portion 20 may have a tapered forward end portion 22a and has a pair of flanges 25 along opposite longitudinal sides or edges thereof. Each flange 25 has an end face 25a which is preferably in close proximity to the end face of its adjacent flange defining a slit 26 which may be molded or cut therebetween.

Each flange 25 has an inwardly directed surface 25b which may be so disposed that the faces 25b of the flanges 25 at opposite ends of each petal 22 are parallel to each other. With such an alignment, when the petals 22 of the shotshell wad 17 open upon leaving the barrel of a shotgun, as will be discussed subsequently herein, the faces 25b tend not to interact with the shot particles 19 positioned therebetween (see FIG. so that the shot particles are not pulled outwardly by the petals. This permits tight patterns to be maintained regardless of the presence of the flanges 25.

If more rapid dispersion of shot particles is desired, the petals may be formed as shown as petal 122 in FIG. 6 wherein faces 12512 on the flanges 125 are angled toward each other thus interacting with the shot particles 19 positioned therebetween when the petals open. In this manner, some of the shot particles fired will be pulled outwardly providing a larger pattern.

FIG. 7 illustrates a further variation wherein petal 222 has inwardly directed faces 225b on flanges 225, generally similar to the embodiment of FIG. 6. However, in this embodiment, the flanges 225 are elongated to interact with additional shot particles so that more shot will be outwardly propelled. It should be readily apparent that further variations of the flanges 25 may be made in accordance with this invention.

The interaction between the shot particles 19 and the flanges 25 is best illustrated with reference to FIG. 3. When a shotshell is fired, the wad 17 is accelerated forward propelling the shot particles 19 through the barrel. Compression of the load of shot forces the particles 19 radially outward so that the peripherally positioned particles interact with the wad. As indicated in US. Pat. No. 3,208,382 issued to D. S. Foote, et al, on Sept. 28, 1965, if the wad is made of high density linear polyethylene plastic material and has a wall thickness of about 0.050 in., it will prevent steel shot from scratching the gun barrel. However, the wad disclosed in Foote et al was not slitted and further means must be utilized to prevent a shot particle such as the shot particles 19A and 19D of FIG. 3 from penetrating the slit 26 which is more easily traversed by a shot particle than is the solid wall of the petals.

As can be seen in the drawing, shot particle 19A is positioned in a location that would permit it to move into the slit 26. If the particle 19A can fully penetrate the slit, the purpose of the wad would be defeated. The two shot particles 19B prevent this by interfering with the movement of shot particle 19A and, more significantly, by interacting with the flanges 25 to hold the slit 26 closed. When the shot particles 19B are forced radially outward as previously indicated, they abut thc respective faces 25b of the flanges 25. Due to the angular relationship of the face 25b with respect to the radially directed force, a component of this force is directed circumferentially toward the slit 26, as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, holding the flanges 25 together. This action is effective even if the wad 17 is formed with slits 26 having expanded outer portions as shown in FIG. 3. It is important, however, that the inner portion of the slit remain substantially closed, that is, with a gap of not more than about one-fourth the diameter of a shot particle. This may be accomplished by forming the flanges as inwardly directed resilient members disposed to have their inner edges held in abutment.

Shot particle 19D is positioned in a plane offset from the particles 1913 so that it abuts the inner edges of the flanges 25. Even with this configuration of shot particles, the interaction of the particles 198 with the flanges, coupled by the increased radial dimension of the flanges, generally on the order of about 1.5 to 2 times the thickness of the petal, will prevent penetration by the shot particle 19A and eliminate the possibility of damage to the barrel.

A further advantage of the flanges 25 is in securing and maintaining proper alignment and orientation of the petals 22 when the shotshell wad 17 is inserted into a shotshell 10. Because the wad 17 of this invention is designed for use with hard shot particles, it is important that all of the shot be contained within the petals 22. Should one of the petals 22 be misaligned when the wad 17 is inserted into the shotshell 10, in a manner such as the example shown in dashed lines as petal 22A in FIG. 1, shot particles falling behind the petal 22A might possibly go undetected causing substantial damage to the shotgun in which the shotshell is used.

Should such a misalignment occur, a wad insertion tool 27 which may be generally conical in shape will radially abut the flanges 25 forcing the petal 22 to its proper position prior to insertion. The petal 22 snaps into place and the wad is positioned in the shotshell 10. Once the petals 22 are in their proper positions, a large force would be required to disturb their orientation because the end faces 25a, having large surface areas, strongly oppose the motion of adjacent petals to positions such as that shown as 22A. Misalignment of a petal 22 would require that one of its flanges 25 be moved through the flange adjacent thereto and thus the interaction of the end faces 25a prevents any further misalignment of the petals.

The obturating cup 24 (FIG. 1) curves outwardly and rearwardly from its affixed central portion and may, if desired, be generally hemispherical (as shown) or parabolic in shape. The cup 24 is preferably thin walled and injection molded with a somewhat oriented structure for enhanced strength. A relatively thick reinforcing band 29 is preferably providedat a predetermined position around the outer surface of the cup.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 8, when a shotshell containing the wad 17 is fired, the primer is ignited causing the propellant 16 to burn rapidly expanding the gases behind the wad 17. Propellant initiation is enhanced by the cup 24 which forms the propellant 16 in a generally domed configuration, placing a greater portion of the propellant ahead of the primer 15. The gases collapse the obturating cup 24 against the rear face 21a of the base 21 so that it functions as a cushioning member. Additionally, it is well known that the structural rigidity of a rigid plastic dome, and thus its resistance to deformation during propellant ignition, is a function of temperature. Because it is more rigid during ignition at low external temperatures and more flexible during ignition at high external temperatures, the cup tends to counteract ignition differences and thereby reduces the chamber pressure and muzzle velocity differences between these extremes. The wad 17 and shot particles 19 are then propelled into the barrel 30 (FIG. 8) where, if the inner diameter of the barrel is greater than that of the shotshell, there will tend to be a gap 31 around the wad, particularly in the vicinity of the base 21 which, unlike the petals 22, is unable to expand.

Propelling gases are prevented from entering this gap by the obturating cup 24 which preferably has a thickness of about 0.02 in. While an inner portion 24a of the obturating cup 24 collapses against the rear face 21a of the base 21, the cup 24 is longer than the radius of the base 21 so that an outer portion 24b is forced radially outward against the surface of the barrel forming a seal. This deformation of the obturating cup 24 causes it to bend at an angle of about 90. However, in the preferred embodiment, the reinforcing band 29 is positioned within this folding portion and provides added material where it is needed to prevent damage which would lessen the sealing ability of the cup 24. The reinforcing band 29 preferably has an angular shape which will fit firmly against the barrel 30 at the gap 31 with less deformation of the cup 24 to enhance the sealing ability of the wad. The structural integrity of the obturating cup can be maintained by the thin cup 24 while it is deformed to, and held in, the position shown in FIG. 8 partially because of the enhanced strength characteristics imparted to the cup because of orientation of the plastic which is caused by injection molding this thin member, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art.

The high forces generated during acceleration of the shotshell wad and the inertia and strength of the shot particles tend to extrude the material of the base 21 around the shot particles 19 adjacent thereto. The base must be sufficiently thick to prevent openings through the base 21 which would destroy the gas seal required for optimum acceleration. To minimize the material needed for the shotshell wad 17, the base 21 may have a thickness which is less than would be required to prevent shot penetration. The obturating cup 24, because it collapses against the base 21 during acceleration, provides extra thickness which must also be penetrated before the gas seal will be jeopardized. Thus, it is only necessary that the combined thickness of the base and obturating cup be sufficient to prevent penetration.

A further embodiment of the wad is shown in FIG. 9 as wad 117 which is formed in a substantially similar manner to the wad 17 with the exception that its base 121 is generally hemispherical in shape rather than being substantially planar as was the base 21 of the wad 17 of FIG. 1. Additionally, an obturating cup 124 has a shape substantially similar to that of the obturating cup 24 of FIG. 1. Reinforcing band 129 is positioned substantially at the rear end of the obturating cup 124 and has a generally cylindrical, peripheral surface 132 therearound.

The expansion of propellant gases collapses the obturating cup 124 against the base 121. The shape of the base 121 provides added cushioning volume through which the cup will collapse so that improved cushioning action can be obtained as cup 124 collapses to the position shown in FIG. 10.

The reinforcing band 129 preferably has an angled shape and is positioned such that it will be forced against the intersection of the base 121 and wall of the barrel 30 without unnecessarydistortion when the obturating cup 124 collapses. The peripheral end surface 132 is preferably generally parallel to the barrel 30 and seats thereagainst when the cup has collapsed so that a seal is provided around the wad without excessive bending which would structurally weaken the obturating cup. The gap 31 shown in FIG. 8 around the base 21 of the wad 17 is eliminated by the wad 117 as the shape of the base 121 permits expansion to the diameter of the barrel.

A further advantage of the shape of the base 21 relates to alignment of the shot particles 19. It is well known that, in a shot container, the shot particles positioned toward the rear of the container are subjected to greater acceleration forces than are those positioned toward the front. With the wad 117, these rearwardly positioned shot particles, which would be most likely to be forced through the side of the wad to cause damage to the barrel, are held away from the surface of the barrel. Additionally, the pressure of the propellant gases applies an inward radial force to these particles urging them away from the wall.

While the wad 117 is traveling through the shotgun choke (not shown), the shot particles toward the rear of the wad are more able to change position and thus help relieve the stresses applied to the shot load without damaging the choke.

During firing of a shotgun with the shotshell 10 (FIG. 1), ignition of the propellant charge 16 produces expanding gases which cause the obturating cup 24 to collapse, in the manner previously described with reference to FIG. 8. The collapse of the cup 24 also improves the operating characteristics of the shotshell 10 by controlling operating pressures as is well known to those skilled in the art.

The expanding gas from the burning propellant l6 accelerates the wad 17 and shot particles 1.9 which open the crimped forward end portion of the shotshell sidewall 11 and enter the barrel 30. Depending on the particular internal dimensions of the barrel, the wad may expand slightly due to spreading of the petals 22 until they are in contact with the wall of the barrel 30. This spreading will cause one or more of the slits 26 to expand so that the effectiveness of the design of the petals 22 becomes critical.

Because the wad 17 is being accelerated by the propellant and the shot particles have an inertial tendency to oppose this acceleration, the shot particles 19 are forced into the base 21 of the wad 17. As previously described, the combined thickness of the base 21 and the inner portion 24a of the obturating cup 24 prevent penetration by the shot particles 20. The high magnitude acceleration force applied to the shot particle 19, increasing in magnitude toward the rear of the shot container 20, does not deform the hard steel shot particles 19 as it would lead shot. Interaction of the shot particles 19 produces outwardly directed radial forces which tend to force the peripheral shot particles into the petals 22.

Because the entire shot charge is contained within the shot container portion 20 of the wad 17, no damage to the barrel 30 can occur unless a shot particle can penetrate through or between the petals 22. It has already been indicated that a thickness of about 0.050 in. is sufficient to prevent penetration through the petals of a high density polyethylene wad. Of course, a lesser thickness may be provided at the forward end portions 22a of the petals due to the lower radial forces present. The flanges 25 interact with the shot particles 19 (FIG. 3) to prevent penetration between adjacent petals 22. Because the flanges are generally effective even if one of the slits 26 is expanded to a width as great as about one-fourth the diameter of a shot particle 19, the thickness of the flanges 25 and their manner of interaction with adjacent shot particles will prevent penetration to the barrel 30 by a shot particle 19.

When the wad 17 reaches the choke (not shown), it must pass through this significantly constricted portion of the barrel without producing permanent deformation of the choked portion of the barrel and preferably with no greater effect on the choke than would be produced by a comparable load of lead shot.

When a wad filled with lead shot passes through a shotgun choke, choke damage is prevented by deformation of the shot particles, change of position of the shot particles, temporary expansion of the choke, and wad deformation. When shot particles made of a hard material such as steel is used, shot deformation is greatly reduced and must, therefore, be replaced by some combination of the other compensating effects. However, a substantial increase in choke deformation may result in permanent damage to the choke and is an undesirable solution.

In the shotshell wad 17, compensation is provided by greatly increased wad deformation. The constriction of a choke is on the order of 0.040 in. while the combined thickness of opposite petals 22 of the wad 17 is about 0.100 in. This petal thickness is much greater than that found in wads designed for soft shot and provides sufficient deformation to prevent choke damage. Additionally, the flanges 25 tend to break up stable shot packing configurations so that the shot particle 19 can flow more readily when passing through the choke.

While the wad 17 is being constricted by the shotgun choke, the inwardly directed force applied to deform the wad stores energy therein which is released when the wad leaves the barrel. Although the petals 22 are forced inwardly by the choke, urging them toward a configuration with a smaller circumference so that the petals would tend to overlap, the interaction of the abutting end faces 25a of the flanges 25 prevents such an overlap and increases the amount of energy which may be stored by the petals 22 so that, when the wad 17 leaves the barrel, the petals apply substantial forces against each other as well as being forced outward by deformation-stored energy. As a result, the petals 22 quickly open releasing the shot. Due to the thickness of the petals 22 and the stiffening effect provided by the flanges 25, the petals, instead of peeling open in the manner of a banana peel, as do many prior art wads, pivot stiffly around their respective points of attachment with the base 21 until they are substantially parallel therewith. This action swiftly releases the shot charge and then provides a high aerodynamic drag to rapidly decelerate the wad.

This opening of the petals 22 may be utilized to spread the shot, thus producing a broader pattern, by forming the flanges as shown in FIG. 6 or FIG. 7. If the flange design of FIG. 5 is used, the opening of the petals 22 will have little or no effect on the shot pattern spread as has previously been described.

Thus, an improved shot container wad is disclosed for hard shot having multi-functional parts so that maximum cushioning and barrel and choke protection are provided with minimized material use permitting propellant and shot loads to be maximized. The flanges on each petal prevent penetration by shot particles, interact with a wad insertion tool to facilitate proper positioning of the petals, and interact with each other to maintain proper positioning of the petals in the shotshell. The obturating cup forms the propellant charge, acts as a cushion, provides some compensation for temperature variations, seals expanding gases behind the wad, and augments the puncture resistance of the shot container base.

The design of the shot container wad may be altered without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. For example, the petal thickness may be gradually increased from the center of each petal to the longitudinal edge. Additionally, if the cushioning function of the obturating cup is deemed unnecessary and the volume thus used is desired for the provision of more propellant or shot, the wad may be formed substantially as shown in FIG. 8 or FIG. 10 with the obturating cup collapsed against and attached to, or formed integrally with, the base of the shot container.

I claim:

1. A shotshell wad comprising a generally circular base, a plurality of petals peripherally attached to the base and extending forwardly therefrom, each of the petals having a pair of longitudinal edges, one edge of each petal positioned proximate to an edge of an adjacent petal, and an inwardly directed flange disposed along substantially the full length of the longitudinal edges of each of the petals.

2. A shotshell wad as in claim 1 wherein each flange has an inwardly directed face, and the inwardly directed faces of the flanges along the longitudinal edges of each petal are generally parallel to each other.

3. A shotshell wad as in claim 1 wherein each flange has an end face positioned to partially abut and form an acute angle with the end face of a flange of its adjacent petal when the shotshell wad is within a shotshell.

4. A shotshell wad comprising a shot container having a base and a forwardly directed peripheral wall extending therefrom, a plurality of slits in said wall defining petals having longitudinal edges, and a longitudinal flange along substantially the full length of each of the edges adjacent the slits, the longitudinal edges of each petal being in close proximity to the longitudinal edges of each adjacent petal.

5. A shotshell wad as in claim 4 wherein shot parti cles are positioned against said petals, each of said flanges has an inwardly directed face, and the faces of the flanges at each slit are aligned to be urged toward each other by outward motion of the shot particles.

6. A shotshell wad as in claim 4 including gas sealing means extending rearwardly from said base.

7. A shot containing wad as in claim 4, wherein said base has an outer edge, and a domed obturating cup, collapsible when the shotshell is fired, is attached to the base flaring outwardly and rearwardly therefrom to define a cushioning space, and a reinforcing band on the cup is positioned to abut the outer edge of the base upon collapse of the cup.

8. A shot containing wad as in claim 7 wherein said cup comprises an inner portion abutting said base upon collapse of said cup, an outer portion forming a peripheral seal upon collapse of said cup, and a folding portion of said cup between the inner portion and the outer portion positioned at the outer edge of said base upon collapse of said cup, and said reinforcing band is formed on said cup at the folding portion.

9. A shot containing wad as in claim 7 wherein said base has a substantially planar rear surface.

10. A shot containing wad as in claim 7 wherein said base has a substantially hemispherical rear surface.

11. A shotshell wad comprising a generally circular base, a plurality of petals of a first predetermined thickness peripherally attached to the base and extending forwardly therefrom, a longitudinal edge on each petal proximate to a longitudinal edge of an adjacent petal, each longitudinal edge being of a second predetermined thickness greater than the first predetermined thickness along substantially the full length of each edge.

12. A shotshell wad as in claim 11 wherein a plurality of projectiles of a predetermined hardness are contained forwardly of said base and within said petals and said first predetermined thickness is sufficient to prevent penetration by said projectiles.

13. A shotshell wad as in claim 12 wherein said projectiles are steel shot particles.

14. A shotshell wad as in claim 13 wherein said shotshell wad is formed of high density polyethylene and said first predetermined thickness is about 0.05 in.

15. A shotshell wad as in claim 11 wherein said second predetermined thickness is about 1.5 times said first predetermined thickness.

16. A shotshell wad comprising a generally circular base, a plurality of petals peripherally attached to the base and extending forwardly therefrom, each pair of adjacent petals having longitudinal edges aligned in substantial abutting relation and protruding inwardly along substantially the full length of each edge.

17. A one piece shot containing wad for a shotshell, said wad comprising a shot container having a base with an outer edge and a forwardly directed peripheral wall extending therefrom, a plurality of slits in said wall defining petals having longitudinal edges, a longitudinal flange along substantially the full length of each of the edges, each flange having an end face positioned proximate to the end face of a flange of its adjacent petal, a cup attached to the base and flaring outwardly and rearwardly therefrom to define a cushioning space through which the cup may collapse when the shotshell is fired, and a reinforcing band formed on the cup and disposed to be positioned against the outer edge of the base upon collapse of the cup.

18. A shot containing wad as in claim 17 wherein a plurality of steel shot particles are contained forwardly of said base and within said petals, said shot containing wad is molded of high density polyethylene and a substantial portion of each petal has a thickness of about 0.05 in.

19. A shot containing wad as in claim 18 wherein each of said flanges has a radial thickness of about 0.075 in. 

1. A shotshell wad comprising a generally circular base, a plurality of petals peripherally attached to the base and extending forwardly therefrom, each of the petals having a pair of longitudinal edges, one edge of each petal positioned proximate to an edge of an adjacent petal, and an inwardly directed flange disposed along substantially the full length of the longitudinal edges of each of the petals.
 2. A shotshell wad as in claim 1 wherein each flange has an inwardly directed face, and the inwardly directed faces of the flanges along the longitudinal edges of each petal are generally parallel to each other.
 3. A shotshell wad as in claim 1 wherein each flange has an end face positioned to partially abut and form an acute angle with the end face of a flange of its adjacent petal when the shotshell wad is within a shotshell.
 4. A shotshell wad comprising a shot container having a base and a forwardly directed peripheral wall extending therefrom, a plurality of slits in said wall defining petals having longitudinal edges, and a longitudinal flange along substantially the full length of each of the edges adjacent the slits, the longitudinal edges of each petal being in close proximity to the longitudinal edges of each adjacent petal.
 5. A shotshell wad as in claim 4 wherein shot particles are positioned against said petals, each of said flanges has an inwardly directed face, and the faces of the flanges at each slit are aligned to be urged toward each other by outward motion of the shot particles.
 6. A shotshell wad as in claim 4 including gas sealing means extending rearwardly from said base.
 7. A shot containing wad as in claim 4, wherein said base has an outer edge, and a domed obturating cup, collapsible when the shotshell is fired, is attached to the base flaring outwardly and rearwardly therefrom to define a cushioning space, and a reinforcing band on the cup is positioned to abut the outer edge of the base upon collapse of the cup.
 8. A shot containing wad as in claim 7 wherein said cup comprises an inner portion abutting said base upon collapse of said cup, an outer portion forming a peripheral seal upon collapse of said cup, and a folding portion of said cup between the inner portion and the outer portion positioned at the outer edge of said base upon collapse of said cup, and said reinforcing band is formed on said cup at the folding portion.
 9. A shot containing wad as in claim 7 wherein said base has a substantially planar rear surface.
 10. A shot containing wad as in claim 7 wherein said base has a substantially hemispherical rear surface.
 11. A shotshell wad comprising a generally circular base, a plurality of petals of a first predetermined thickness peripherally attached to the base and extending forwardly therefrom, a longitudinal edge on each petal proximate to a longitudinal edge of an adjacent petal, each longitudinal edge being of a second predetermined thickness greater than the first predetermined thickness along substantially the full length of each edge.
 12. A shotshell wad as in claim 11 wherein a plurality of projectiles of a predetermined hardness are contained forwardly of said base and within said petals and said first predetermined thickness is sufficient to prevent penetration by said projectiles.
 13. A shotshell wad as in claim 12 wherein said projectiles are steel shot particles.
 14. A shotshell wad as in claim 13 wherein said shotshell wad is formed of high density polyethylene and said first predetermined thickness is about 0.05 in.
 15. A shotshell wad as in claim 11 wherein said second predetermined thickness is about 1.5 times said first predetermined thickness.
 16. A shotshell wad comprising a generally circular base, a plurality of petals peripherally attached to the base and extending forwardly therefrom, each pair of adjacent petals having longitudinal edges aligned In substantial abutting relation and protruding inwardly along substantially the full length of each edge.
 17. A one piece shot containing wad for a shotshell, said wad comprising a shot container having a base with an outer edge and a forwardly directed peripheral wall extending therefrom, a plurality of slits in said wall defining petals having longitudinal edges, a longitudinal flange along substantially the full length of each of the edges, each flange having an end face positioned proximate to the end face of a flange of its adjacent petal, a cup attached to the base and flaring outwardly and rearwardly therefrom to define a cushioning space through which the cup may collapse when the shotshell is fired, and a reinforcing band formed on the cup and disposed to be positioned against the outer edge of the base upon collapse of the cup.
 18. A shot containing wad as in claim 17 wherein a plurality of steel shot particles are contained forwardly of said base and within said petals, said shot containing wad is molded of high density polyethylene and a substantial portion of each petal has a thickness of about 0.05 in.
 19. A shot containing wad as in claim 18 wherein each of said flanges has a radial thickness of about 0.075 in. 